Description

Last updated on January 3rd, 2018 at 03:52 am

Our 1 Day Hanoi Urban Adventure Cycle is arranged in a rural area in the suburb of Hanoi where you ride only on the back roads to avoid busy traffic. You will have a chance to enjoy the slow life, walking on brick roads, cycling amidst countryside and rural villages. This is the best one day bike tour we recommend for family holidays in Vietnam.

Itinerary

8.00 AM: You will be picked up by our guide from your hotel and transferred out of Hanoi. After about 30mm drive, you will arrive in an ancient village. You will be first dropped off at our garage to check the bikes. Then start riding through the Ke Ve market. The market is the most crowded about 9AM. You may like to walk your bike slowly through the market to experience the local activities.

After about 15 minute ride, you make the first stop at the Chem Communal house. The communal house, known as an ancient temple in the 17th century, was built to the north of the village near the dyke of the Red River. In 1635, it was restored and expanded to worship three spirits, including Thien Than (Doc Cuoc who was invited to the communal house by Phan Phu Tien from Sam Son, Thanh Hoa), Dia Than (the tutelary god who helped the villagers prevent disasters, fight against drought and performed some miracles) and Nhan Than (Le Khoi, a nephew of King Le Thai To, who was a famous general and was awarded the title “Senior lieutenant-general”. The communal house also pays homage to Pham Tho Ly, who gave land to build the communal house in 1635, and Doctor Pham Quang Dung who restored the communal house in 1718.

After visiting the communal house, you keep cycling along the Red River dyke, crossing the Nhue Giang river, arriving the outskirts of Hanoi. You continue biking for some kilometers on the flat village lanes until you turn left, finding yourselves in Tay Tuu flower villages. Tay Tuu is considered as the oldest flower village in the suburban area. The village was formed about 10 years ago. The most popular flowers in this area are rose, gerbera and lily.

You cycle amidst the flower, vegetable, bonsai gardens and rural hamlets. Another stop is made on the way for a short break or a visit to a local family.

The bike ride takes about three hours before you arriving back in Dong Ngac, in time for lunch. After lunch, you will be transferred back to your hotel. Trip ends at about 3.30 pm.

Options

Option 1 (25K): Transfer from your hotel to the suburb of Hanoi -> Cycling in Hanoi rural area (approx. 25K) -> Transfer back to your hotel.

Map

Additional Information

Itinerary

Occasionally our tour itineraries are updated during the year to incorporate improvements stemming from past travelers’ comments and our own research. The information given in this itinerary may be slightly different to that in the service proposal. It’s very important that you print and review a final copy of your itinerary prior to travel. If you have any queries, please contact us.

Please note that while we operate successful cycling holidays in Vietnam throughout the year, some changes may occur in our itineraries due to inclement weather and common seasonal changes to timetables and transport routes. This can happen with little notice so please be prepared for modifications to the route. The order and timing of included activities in each location may also vary from time to time.

Price

Bargaining is not a strange fact in Vietnam. There are many places in Vietnam where people bargain, especially in open-air markets, street shops and rural areas. Therefore we are not good at bargaining. We don’t like this trick neither. Our time is precious and we appreciate your time as well. We would prefer spending our time on the tour arrangements to the price negotiation. Our price is fixed.

Inclusions

Our trip cost usually includes the following services. Please bear in mind Lotussia Travel is specialized in tailor-made trips. Trip cost vary depending on group size and other details.

Vehicle for transfers and support

Tour guide. The English-Speaking guide is provided by default. Other language may be available upon request (with extra charge).

Bicycle rental

Accommodation

Meals

Snacks

Sightseeing entrance fees.

Bottled water.

Exclusions

Unless required most of the following services are usually not included in our tour price.

Visa (required)

Flight/Train tickets.

Accommodation pre/post trip.

Travel insurance

Tips

Personal expenses

Visa

Visitors are required to have a valid visa to Vietnam. A one month tourist visa is usually sufficient for most visitors, though it is possible to arrange three months or six month – multiple entry visa for regular visitors.

Money

The official national currency is the Vietnamese Dong (VND), but the US dollar is widely accepted in Vietnam. However, small towns and the villages the VND is preferred, ATM are available in all major cities and towns, tourist destinations, Vietcombank, Agriculture banks are the two largest networks with a limit a single withdraw limit of 2,000,000 d (95 USD). Most major currrencies can be exchanged in Vietnam, but the USD is the most preferred. The exchange rate 1 USD = 22.400 VND (Nov. 2016)

Weather

Vietnam has a tropical monsoon climate. Broadly speaking, the weather in Vietnam is dictated by two seasons – the southwest monsoon from April to September and the Northeast monsoon from October to late march or early April.

Due to regional climate differences, there are no right or wrong seasons to visit Vietnam. The north Vietnam is cool, damp in winters between November and December and February with temperature in Hanoi falling to around 15oC. The summer months from April to October are hot and dry. The best time visit Vietnam is spring (February – April) or Autumn (late September – December) when it is not so humid. The weather turns quite cold and wet in January and this continues to march. The humidity can prove oppressive from May to the early September.

Safety

Wearing a helmet is compulsory on all our biking adventures. Our tour guide often carry first aid kit while riding. Please follow your guide while biking, and much attention is required while you cross streets.

Difficulty levels

To assist you visualize how our bike trip is difficult, we have graded our Vietnam cycling tours into three categories, easy, moderate, and challenging. We group many factors into consideration into this grading, including distant covered, terrain, altitude, and vehicle support.

Easy

Involves cycling for up to two to three hours a day at easy pace and usually, less than 3 days in duration. The cycling distances is around 15 – 30 km per day. There are likely to be no steep and sustained descents as well as demand for technical riding. We will normally ride on flat roads. Suitable for bikers who enjoy occasional weekend riding on trails at home. Push bikes are sometimes used for these itineraries.

Moderate

Involves biking for up to six hours a day at a steady pace and are usually between three to five days in duration. The cycling distance is about 35 – 55 km per day. Sometimes it can be long flat rides or medium ride with fews up and downhill climbs. The support vehicle will not always be available. We will need a good level of fitness. We use either mountain bikes or road bikes for these itineraries.

Challenging

Involves biking in mountainous areas with big climbs for up to seven or eight hours a day and usually more than a week in duration. Cycling distance is about 60 – 80 km per day. There will be steep and sustained ascents and descents. The support vehicle will not always be available. These trips will provide a real sustained workout even for fit and experienced mountain bikers.

Accommodation

When cycling we mostly stay in small hotel, guesthouse or homestays. Some are more basic than others! Bear in mind that some of the places we overnight in are not on the standard tourist trail. In larger cities and towns, our hotels are generally more western style and are three or four hotels. Camping is not available on cycling tours in Vietnam unless it is required and this should be booked months in advance. Please see the details on the quote.

Tour Guide

Most of our tour guides speak English. Some other speak French. Few speak other language such as German, Russian, Spanish. All our guides have great knowledge of history, local culture, and religions of the area where you are cycling. Our guides have been trained in this field and is fully licensed in tour guiding.

Mechanic

We arrange a mechanic, with extra charge only for big groups or when it is required. When there is no mechanic, our guide will take care of problem which may occur during the bike ride.

Vehicle

Depending on the nature of the tour, our cycle journeys will be accompanied by an air-conditioned car/minibus cover the larger overland sections. We often use mini bus or bus for transfer and back up (guided tours).

1 – 4 people: we use minivan to support and carry bikes. Sometimes we use car with support truck.

5 – 8 people: we use one van and one truck to support

9 people – over: we use one bus and truck to support

We only provide bike rental and truck to support for self-guided bike tours.

Bikes repairs

Basic spares and tools kit are generally carried by our guide or mechanic or on the support vehicle, although we can not guarantee having spares for every conceivable problem.

Food and drinks

All the meals which, are mentioned in itinerary (B=Breakfast; L=Lunch; D=Dinner), are included in the tour price. Most of meals are Vietnamese local food. Vegetarians are certainly welcome and are always accommodated, please let us know of any dietary concerns at time of booking. Beverage and alcoholic drink are not included at mealtime or in restaurants.

Snacks and water

When we transfer, ride by minibus (no cycling day), our bottled waters are always available for you in the car/van. When we have cycling days, we will offer cold water (summer) plus fresh tropical fruits, soft drinks. Please find out what is included in our service proposal.

Packing

Comfortable lightweight clothing in natural fabrics such as cotton is most suitable for travelling in Vietnam. The dress code is fairly casual as in most parts of the tropics but it is advisable to cover arms and legs in the evenings against biting insects. A lightweight raincoat is a good idea in the rainy season. During the winter months warm clothing is needed for visiting the north of Vietnam. Visitors should not wear shorts, short skirts or other skimpy clothing when visiting religious buildings such as pagoda, temple and shoes should be removed before entering a private home.

What you take will naturally depend upon where you are travelling and the style of journey you are undertaking, and it can often be difficult to decide what to pack. Nevertheless, the following should act as a useful checklist of essential items worth thinking about taking.

Clothing

2 pairs of riding shorts

2 riding jerseys (quick-dry)

2 pairs of quick dry socks for cycling

Comfortable shoes for biking and walking

Riding gloves

2-3 t-shirts or casual shirts

Trousers or jeans

1-2 pairs of casual socks for non-cycling activities

3-5 sets of underwear (quick-dry)

Cool-weather jacket or rain jacket

Extra layers and gloves for cooler season or climate (thin, thermal, water-wicking)

Bathing suit

Sandals

Toiletries

Tooth brush and tooth paste

Razor

Hair brush

Shampoo

Deodorant

Hand sanitizer

Miscellaneous

Passport, wallet and ID

Health insurance card

Travel insurance card

Cash and/or credit cards

Camera (with spare battery)

Plastic bags (for dirty laundry, wet clothes)

Electronic chargers (for camera, e-reader, cell phone)

Adaptors or convertors

Tipping

Tipping for good services is always appreciated. It is customary, though not compulsory, to tip tour guides and drivers at the end of the tour. Hotels and station porters should also be tipped a small amount for.

Community

Prior to our tours, we contact and work with local community leaders to make sure we are welcome and in a manner that minimizes negative social and cultural impacts. We visit local development and community projects specific to the region, encouraging customers to donate and assist such a projects in appropriate and sustainable manner.

Where make sure that where and whenever possible our tours positively benefit the local community. We stayed at locally owned accommodation and visit cottage industries for local handicraft souvenir, generating income for local business. We often employ, hire support team such as local guide, motor-taxi drivers, cook assistants on all trips to ensure that the local community benefit not only short term but with increased employment opportunities for the future.